Engineering studies on storage of onion crop [electronic resource].

Includes references.

A study was carried out to compare and evaluate three different storage methods of onion (traditional storage, ventilated storage and cold storage). The ventilated storage method was studied under two different types of vertical storage bins (concrete and metal), while the cold storage method was proceeded in a refrigerated chamber using three different types of storage sacks (poly-ethelene, purlap, and strip plastic) and three different types of packing boxes (pamboo, wood, and plastic). The evaluation basis included assessment of bulbs deterioration, weight loss and sprouting percentage. The results showed that, the traditional storage method recorded the highest deterioration and accumulative weight losses followed by the ventilated and cold storage methods respectively. On the other hands, the ventilated masonry storage bin showed lower deterioration and accumulative weight loss as compared to the ventilated metal bin. Meanwhile, the cold storage in poly-ethelene sacks and plastic boxes showed the lowest deterioration and accumulative weight loss a~ compared to other studied materials. Also, both traditional and ventilated storage methods showed no sprouting of onion bulbs, while the cold storage method recorded a sprouting percentage ranged from 4.5 to 7.2 % due to higher level of air relative humidity inside the cold storage chamber.

Summary in Arabic.

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